1. Field of the Present Invention
The present invention relates to the fields of inflation systems and safety devices.
2. Status of the Related Art
Current art does not contain all the features claimed by the present invention. U.S. Pat. No. 5,365,967 (Moore, 1994) discloses a specially built tire valve with a built-in pressure indicator that emits a whistling sound when a preset pressure is attained. No adjustment feature on the preset pressure level is disclosed or claimed. U.S. Pat. No. 5,257,642 (Worth, 1993) discloses a pressure relief valve that can be inserted into a tire valve specially built with an integral on-off feature. The relief valve is preset to discharge air to the environment when a tire is inflated to a pressure greater than a predetermined value. The Moore and Worth inventions require valves that differ greatly from the industry standard and add undesirable wheel rim mass that can cause wheel balancing problems. Neither invention offers the safety benefit of hands-free, automatic disconnect of the inflation system at a desired pressure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,857,481 (Zimmerman, 1999) discloses a tire inflation system that permits an operator to open a valve and inflate a remotely located tire through a flexible hose. The operator can set a desired tire pressure level on a pressure regulator located near the valve, and the hose can be disconnected from the regulator when the desired pressure is attained. U.S. Pat. No. 6,279,599 (Chen, 2001) discloses an air hose assembly that permits conventional inflation, and also provides for air release with a sliding mechanism, concentric with the hose assembly, with which the operator can hold the valve open until the desired amount of air is released. Neither invention offers the safety benefit of hands-free, automatic disconnect of the inflation system at a desired pressure.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,076,037 (Perez, 1978) discloses a safety valve that threads onto a conventional tire valve stem and relieves pressure above a preset value. It offers no inflation capability.